Who We Are

“Few people, especially in the United States, understand the profession of interpretation. 

They know what lawyers, engineers, architects, and brain surgeons are all about. But the art of interpretation is a mystery to many. They may assume that it consists of bilingual people changing words spoken in one language into the same words of another language. That is not at all what professional interpretation is. In challenging situations, accurate interpretation is no less sophisticated, complex, and intellectually demanding than brain surgery. The professional interpreter is required to carry more general knowledge into each job than architects and engineers need in the daily exercise of their profession. It requires the analytical skills of trial lawyers and their acting ability in the courtroom. It also requires a great deal of creativity. It is a true profession in the academic sense of the word…”

 ——- HARRY OBST,  WHITE HOUSE INTERPRETER: THE ART OF INTERPRETATION, AUTHOR HOUSE PUBLISHER, 2010,

Since 1951, LANGUAGE SERVICE BUREAU® has been providing multilingual translation services to international organizations and labor unions, Fortune 500 and insurance companies, law firms, banking institutions, as well as federal, state and municipal government agencies throughout the United States and worldwide. Founded by Gladys and Franklin Clark - two former freelance translators at the Office of Language Services of the US Department of State in Washington, DC - the agency originally catered to the private sector and relied on the language skills of their colleagues, interpreters and translators in the DC Metropolitan area.

Born in Argentina, Lili S. Packer passed the written and oral examinations and joined the corps of US Department of State’s language service division from the mid-1950s through the mid 1960s traveling throughout the United States as a consecutive and simultaneous escort interpreter accompanying delegations of scholars and educators, prominent writers and journalists, civil engineers, political and labor union activists, as well as visiting Central and South American countries at the side of presidents (Kennedy, Johnson, and Carter), ambassadors, and special envoys. As a freelance simultaneous Spanish interpreter, Mrs. Packer was one of the first in the field to pass the federal court examination and obtain her certification, as well as a Grand Jury clearance. Highly in demand, she successfully conducted her conference interpreting assignments at international organizations and, as of 1984, when she acquired the translation company from the Clarks, administered the subcontracting of her colleagues for multilingual labor union conventions, plenary sessions, and international conferences..

Upon retiring from conference interpreting, Mrs. Packer handed the day-to-day operation of the translation agency to her daughter, Tatiana, a graphic designer by training (Pratt Institute) and bilingual journalist that has worked as a US-based correspondent with magazine publications in Spain, Italy, France and the UK.

The highly skilled translators and interpreters subcontracted through our agency are thoroughly vetted and require a tested and proven range of abilities and conference experience (such as accreditation from renowned language institutions, US Department of State, the American Translators Association, and / or Federal Court certification, the National Association of Judiciary Interpreters (NAJIT), etc.) and are members in good standing of US and international associations such as the ATA, TAALS, IICA, etc. and have at least five years of professional experience in the field.